‘A joy to watch’ – Gary Neville blown away by one Newcastle player v Man United

Gary Neville has described Jonjo Shelvey’s masterclass for Newcastle United in their 1-0 Premier League win against Manchester United on Sunday as a “joy to watch”.

Shelvey delivered arguably his outstanding performance of the season in the high profile clash at St James’ Park and was awarded the man of the match by Sky Sports pundit Neville.

The match was settled by Matt Richie’s emphatic strike after 65 minutes as Newcastle then held on to their lead through some dogged defending, including three goalline clearances, the most in any Premier League fixture this season.

Ex-United defender Neville covered the match live for Sky Sports on their Main Event channel and his eye was caught by the central midfielder dictating the play for the home side.

“Jonjo Shelvey’s passing in this game has been a joy,” Neville said in the closing stages of the live coverage. “His class, composure, has been great to see. He is absolutely the man of the match.”

In one of the biggest upsets of the season so far, Newcastle beat United for the first time in five year.

It lifts Rafael Benitez’s side to 13th in the table and two points ahead of the relegation zone in a huge boost to their survival hopes.

United remain in second in the division but are looking over their shoulder and will be just two points above Liverpool if they beat Southampton in the late afternoon kick-off at St Mary’s Stadium.